Lessons from "A Raisin In The Sun"

Last night on ABC was the airing of the much-hyped TV movie, A Raisin in The Sun. The small-screen production was originally a play by Lorraine Hansberry that debuted on Broadway in 1959. The story is based upon a family's own experiences growing up in Chicago's Woodlawn neighborhood (my hometown!).

The strong performances of the cast members, which included Phylicia Rashad, Sanaa Lathan, and the ubiquitous Sean "Diddy" Combs, inspired a couple of thoughts.

1. Diddy is a perfect example of why it's so important to be considered great or an expert at one thing first. Back in the early 1990's he built a reputation (brand) for being a shrewd music mogul with a strong sense of style, a hit-making producer, and for having discovered many musical acts, such as Mary J. Blige, who went on to super stardom.

He focused all of his energy on being the best record executive he could be before he opened a restaurant, started a clothing line, and became a television star. Do you see the process? He became the standard in his respective industry then created spin-off businesses that were just natural extensions of himself and his brand. And now, there's a strong possibility that he'll be nominated for an award for his role as "Walter Lee Younger".

There’s nothing wrong with having a lot of ideas. Just don’t pursue them all at once. Keep a journal and write them down. Then, after you’ve established yourself, take a look at your list. You might find that you have some viable ideas that may work.

2. We all want opportunities to live our dreams. But, will you be prepared when the chance comes? Diddy's character, Walter Lee Younger, wanted so badly to get out of his situation as a low-wage driver who received even less respect. He begged his mother to give him $10,000 that she was getting as an insurance settlement. Then, when he finally got $6500 to go into business as a liquor store owner, he lost it to his "business partner" who ran off with the money.

Anyone can get conned out of money. However Walter Lee was so overly excited about he business that I wonder if he would've gotten duped had he done more research - on the business and his "partner".

One of my favorite quotes comes from Muhammad Ali: "I'd either won or lost the fight before I got in the ring." What Ali meant was that if he trained properly, put in the time, gave attention to details, bled and sweat, he knew that he was ready.

Have you put in the necessary time and preparation to be ready when your shot comes?